HGI Board – Terms of Reference

1. Purpose of the Board

1.1. The Human Givens Institute Board is responsible for:

1. 1. Setting and overseeing strategy and policy for the Institute;
   2. Setting and reviewing standards of education, professional practice, assessment and criteria for entry onto the HGI professional register to ensure that the integrity of the human givens approach is maintained;
   3. Ensuring due administration and financial management of the Institute;
   4. Ensuring management arrangements are in place to deliver the key activities of the Institute;
   5. Approving the establishment of and overseeing the work of committees and special interest groups within the HGI.

1.2. The Human Givens Institute Board is the top level Board of the Institute; all other committees will be accountable to the HGI Board.

Communications between all specialist groups within HGI is key and all special committees will be provided with regular opportunities to meet with and report to the Board.

For some special committees and groups a separation of duties will be required. For example, the Registration and Professional Standards Committee (RPSC) must function independently of the Board in its work, but remains accountable to the Board. In these cases, the HGI Board will be responsible for policy and practice but will not oversee or involve itself in case detail.

2. Membership of the Board

2.1. All Directors of the Board are full members of the HGI, over 18 and eligible.

2.2. The Directors will nominate from within their number a member to act as Chair and Secretary for each meeting. The next person to perform this role, undertaken on a rotational basis, will be nominated at the close of each meeting. The person nominated will perform all associated duties until the close of the next meeting.

2.3. The Directors may appoint additional Board members or co-opt members as advisers. Advisers to the Board will not take part in decision making.

3. Board procedure and decision-making

3.1. The Board will meet every two months via Zoom to make key decisions and review the reports and progress of specialist groups and committees.

3.2. The Board will be quorate for decision making purposes if the number closest to 50 per cent of the full membership of the Board is present. If the Board is not quorate, the meeting should be reconvened.

3.3. Decisions will generally be summarised by the Chair on the basis of the discussion. If there is no clear consensus a vote will be taken. Only full members of the Board will vote. The Chair has the casting vote.

3.4. By exception, outside of the schedule of meetings, a Board member may call for an urgent decision to be made by correspondence, usually email. In this case the urgency will be made clear and a deadline for response given. Quorum rules, the number closest to 50 per cent of full Board membership, will still apply.

3.5. The Board in order to discharge its decision making responsibilities will take papers, reports and financial information from the Institute staff, special committees, professional advisers and other members of the Institute. These will be sent to and collected from the Board support email address: chairsupport@hgi.org.uk

3.6. The Board member nominated as Chair will commission papers and agree the agenda for Board meetings. As Secretary they will co-ordinate all correspondence and record the minutes. Other members of the HGI may attend to present information or to hear the discussion at the invitation of the Board.

4. Required Sub-Committees

4.1. The board will establish sub-committees as required. At present these are:

1. 1. Registration and Professional Standards Committee
   2. Finance and Audit Committee
   3. Clinical Governance Group

4.2. All sub-committees will have their own separate terms of reference defining membership and function, which will be approved by the Board.

4.3. In the case of the Registration and Professional Standards Committee, the HGI Board will take reports from the Committee concerning:

• any matters pertaining to the HGI professional register; particularly the maintenance of standards for entry onto the register and standards of professional practice set by the HGI board;
• ethical policy and clarifications;
• numbers and progress of complaints against practitioners;
• details of any concluded cases which raise questions of policy for the HGI Board;
• details of any concluded cases which result in removal of a practitioner from the HGI register;
• summary details of all other concluded complaints.

4.4. In the case of the Finance and Audit Committee, the HGI Board will require an annual report from the committee, monitoring revenue and expenditure, balance sheet, risks and liabilities and audit status. The Board will require a financial summary and update at each meeting.

4.5. In the case of the Clinical Governance Group, a report of relevant activities will be provided at each Board meeting.

4.6. Other committees and boards established on an ad hoc basis should have terms of reference agreed by the HGI Board on their inception, including how the Board will be updated on their work.